, 1887-09-08
HorTgN1oT AND THERMOMETER.

A Black Barbarian Who Was Much Ex.
ercised Over the Mercury In the Tube.
My boy Pet was not handsome. In
deed, to European ideas, his small eyes
set obliquely in his face; his wide and
flat nose with its distorted ~nostriIs, and
the bridge so little elevated that the
space between the cheek bones was al
most flat; his protruding lips and long
and prominent but narrow and pointed
chin might appear positively ugly, not
w~ithstanding the verdicts of the various
Hottentot bellies with whom he was ON
familiar terms, and who evidently re-
garded him with approving eyes.
He was a pure Hottentot, of atypeno
almost extinct; he was faithful; toleral "
honest, except in matters in which food,
drink or money were concerned; less of
a drunkard h most of his compatriots;
and a liar of but small capacity. He
was about five feet four inches in height
and of a jaundiced yellow hue. His age
amounted to about 10 years in actual
time; but be appeared to be at least n
century old in wickedness and ~depravity.
D. kept a thermometer hung up on
a nail which was driven into one of the
ridge poles of the tent, and the mercury
in the tube and bowl much exercised the
NAAbN "a - AS ohC 10 llCQutIllll
What it was for, and evidently regarded
our explanations as to the use of the in
strument as mere subterfuges designed to
disguise the truth, asking:
What thesuse of such ting? S'pose
L see cloud dis side over dar, den me
know rain o catch dis part, and make
plenty cold. S'pose you no able for tell
if day hot or cold without dem t'ing?'
The word mercury" too, he con
sidered ii slang name we had invented to
describe the metal in the bowl; and one
day, when D. happened to refer to it
as quicksilver" in Piet's presence, l
could see a sudden CLEAN of intelligence
in the boys eyes, and a pleased express
sion on his flat c-ountenance, as if he had
at last received c~orroborative evidence of
a fact which he had long suspected.
Next day we came back from the claim
somewhat earlier than was our custom
on account of the unusual heat, and
when D. went, as usual, toward the
thermometer to see what the temperature
was, behold, no thermometer was there.
We, of course, suspected Pet at once,
and searched high and low for him. He
was nowhere near our tent, but after
some time we discovered him at a little
distance, crouched down behind a heap
of ''stuff' near a sorting table, busily en-
gagged with something on the ground.
We approached him on tiptoe, and be-
held an amusing sight. Before him on
the ground lay the broken thermometer
and beside it, in the dust, was a glisten-
ing little silver globule of mercury.
PETS eyes were fastened upon this with
a mingled expression of amazement and
fright. Every now and then he would
cautiously extend a finger and thumb
and endeavor to pick up the mercury,
which naturally escaped him and rolled
to n side. His action and expression
each time he found he had missed it
were SO absurd that at last we could not
restrain u laughter; he at once heard
us, looked round, and the next moment
was dancing about and making grimaces
at us 200 yards off.
1t was not until the pangs of hunger
compelled him, toward the evening. to
approach the tent that we caught him.
He expressed contrition, but seemed to
think, at the same time, that we had
played a shabby trick on him.
what for you tell me that silver live
in dem ting for?" he asked, "Whv you
no say it witchcraft? and then l left him.
That no good silver-not O silver"
ALI the Year Round.